Bullet lubricator



Dec. 26, 1950 L. E. WADMAN ET AL 2,535,616

BULLET LUBRICATOR Filed Feb. 10, 1947 I 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 lig.2

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INVENTORS Frederick (Z Games Luc/us E. Wad/71am ATTORNE Y Dec. 26, 1950 1.. E. WADMAN ET AL 2,535,616

BULLET LUBRICATOR Filed Feb. 10, 1947 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEY Dec. 26, 1950 L. E. WADMAN ET AL BULLET LUBRICATOR 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Feb. 10, 1947 55 zzizl F.

LHIE

S n Y e Z M NO w m mdW/ T T .cE A f. n f

Patented Dec. 26, 1950 UNITED S'IZ ENT OFFICE 2 ,535,616" BtiLLurr LUBRICATdR. Lucia SE ."wadrnamltfillyallep;and-Frederick J.- Gomesg-Tibiiron, Calif. Al lfl eation ribmarino, 1947; Serial No: 727,506.

Claim:

Thisinventionrelates. tdade'vice for,siziriand lubricating a bullet,v V t H ,e

, Bullets forusain thehaz i adihsor 'amnil i ii-E. tion are usually. cast in. a mam Beioreit can i positioned 1 in a l cartridge, it must. first be: siZQdi Thishas been accomplishectheretofore b the bullet through. suitableidielso, tha Wile. the bullet issues from;the .1die.-.it'is ot the; correct size.. to,fit.ther rifle inwhichgitis tdbeus d. The bullet mustalso. be. lubricated so the; 'vvili fit readilyiinto. the. chamber. oi. the {rifle and so that: it will carry, a; lubricant "with; it; down the, rifie; barreh Insome instances the bullet} after. having bee'njsized, ,ielubricatedhyhand. Bulletsiz; inl'g devices. have. beenattempted hretoiore in which. the lubric'aht. islsuppliedunderlpressure to media so. that t e. lu i ant; si pli d the bullet.aS itQuniergo'es,sl.z.ing,. the, pr ssure appli-ii a iori continuing.- to. such an xterit...even Latt the bullet had.l fifisedthrbn hthei sizing. die; that thellfiowof lubricant c oritinuejst, Asa result, con; siderablet'waista'ge'. e'nsiies, and,the ,device becomes; covered with the" lubricant, particularly, if the bri n su pl r ss r wa a nta n d siifi cienuy. higlhtoens'ure an ade uate supply t t die... If g the, lubricant supp y, pressure; is; main; tainledrelative1y low. it, reduce, waste, the bullets: are cenerallylunderrlubricated; V I V.

The; device offthe present invention embodies a bullet "sizing dielwhich is supplied 'vvithjai,lubri+ cant under pressure In addition, the device in eludes; means for controlling the simplyof lubrig cantis'o' that. application of the lubricant: ojcurs; only when aj b'ul1"et'j isinposition intiief ie for lubrication, time fi'oyv of l lubricant; bein cut o1?" p s uvecy. during the urtialjpq oii .an thefinalt portion of the traverseoi -thebulljet; through the ie. n this. mi bfi a t iihs jr di 3; xce u ri t 1 nd s urebe e' .s r ined. 9 a'nd'collecte'd fer re-use 'Ifhe device .fjthejprese ent invention thus ensures 'that ah adequate; and uniform. quantity of lubricant 'is applied to "each bullet with an entire absence or at least; ajminimunroflubricantwaStagei u H h It is the. generally broad "object" of the present invention to providejan impro've'djb'iill'etSizerand. lubricat on. t t I Another'object of the present invention isltof provide a novel bu let sizer and lubricator.

Aiurther. object 0;. the-present. invention is. to provide. a bullet sizerandjlubricator'inyhich the supply of lubricant to a ybulletundergoing isfg ontrolledLto. the. endgthat the, .l riv c n plied t?" the; bu1I 'et only. drring an inter portion of the. s zi g. o erations? 2 quatea'nd uniformv amount of lubricantois applied Of each bullet sized;

The. inyention includes other objects and fea; tures, of advantage some of which, together with; the 'fojregoing, Will appearhereinafterwherein the presentpreierred.iorm of bullet sizer and'lubrioatonojourinvention is disclosed. i

nL he rawina cc mpany a d. forming 1 part hereo f,, Figure 1; is a plan .viewof the bullet size'r and lubricat'or of this invention.

Eigure Z isa sidew elevation of the sizer and lubricaton.

Figure 3' is anend elevationpf the sizer, andlubricator.

Figures. 4, 5 and .6lare each side elevations, partly in section, of.a portionof the bullet sizer and,lubricatorillustrating successive positions of various elements of' the. sizer and lubricator.

Figure 'Zis aside elevation partly in section of a',modifi'ed ;form of sizer and lubricator,

Refi iingio thet drawings the device includes afsuitable base}.adaptedto basecured to a fixed s'upport., Secured to thebase'lby studs Stisa U,-shaped frarrie, generally. indicatedjby numeral B andjjhaving SQaced legs H and l2, th e latter bein :pns on dnfiup ort n engagement with the base plate 1;, Mounted in ,the 1eg l 2 isia relmovable. bullet .sizing d n ally indicat tbu numeiial IL, The die; is removably mountedlin leg I 2 by screwthread I 3 so that variousdiescan bi," inserted and bullets of different diameters sized; in the. device.

Slid'ably mounted in leg I l of the frame 9. is a p unger l5 having, an end I6 formed to engage the generally ogival endof a bullet. and to. force the. bullet through the bullet sizing. die 1.4, the. plunger. being movable along the longitudinal axis-of,thesiaing die. To move the, plunger 15., ahandle Hjis. provided, the latter being shortened in the drawings for convenience of illustration. A .'clevis I 8 isv mounted upon. the end of,plunger I5 and a pin I9 is extended through the clevis and through handle H. The handle, is supported intermediat its ends by a link 2!, one endj of which. is. mounted upon a. pin 22 in a suitable recess .in the frame member 9 while the, other end isconnectedby. apin 2,3, to the handle. Lowering of handle lj'rnoves the pluneer l5.tovvardoandinto the die: to force a. bullet through the die tor sizingilifting. of the handle. retracts. the, plunger,

To supplylubricant .to a bu11et.undergomg. siz ing weuprqvide a lubricating channel 26. about the" exterior. oi the bullet. sizing die so thaua; lubricant ,under, pressure can be, applied to grease dmey slls pimed aheu f c f. t e ullet n 3 within the die through a plurality of spaced apertures 29.

Means are provided for supplying lubricant to the lubricating channel 26 including a lubricant reservoir generally indicated by numeral 3! and comprising a cylindrical vessel 32 screwed into fitting 33, the latter being carried in a streetell or elbow 34 which is in turn secured to a nipple 36 on the side of frame 9. Within the vessel 32 is provided a movable plunger 31 carried on a spring 38, the spring being in turn carried upon a piston 39 mounted upon the end of threaded rod 4| which extends through threaded casing end 42, a handle 43 being provided on the end of the rod.

The construction just described comprises a well known form of grease gun which, upon being filled with lubricant and upon rotation of the threaded rod 4| by handle 43, supplies a lubricant under pressure through the nipple 33.

Within leg 2 of frame 9 is provided a first passage 46 leading in from the nipple 36 through the frame to a second passage 41 formed in plug 59 and in the frame and leading to the lubricating channel 26 in the bullet sizing die. A piston 49 is slidably mounted in the second passage 4! to cut off the supply of lubricant from passage 45 and to force the lubricant in the second passage 41 into channel 26 and onto the grooves in a bullet. V

In accordance with this invention, means are provided for controlling the supply of lubricant and for coordinating this with the positioning of a bullet in the die so that the lubricant is only supplied to the bullet to lubricate the latter when it is in position in the die. To this end, a portion of the second passage 41 is preferably positioned at a suitable angle to the longitudinal axis of the die so that a valve member can be moved into position to control the supply of lubricant to the die. The valve member 5| is adiustably supported on a rod 54 which is sidablv guided by leg II and is supported by a clevis 52 and a pin 53 from handle Intermediate its ends, the valve member 5| includes a passage 55 which, when suitably positioned, permits the lubricant to flow through the second passage. To move the plunger 49 and to coordinate its movement with that of the valve member 5| and the plunger I5, a clevis 6| is mounted upon an end of the piston and a link 62 is extended between this clevis and arm 53 on a bell crank 64 mounted on post 65 on base I. The other arm 61 of the bell crank is connected by adjustable link 68 to handle H.

To permit release of pressure on the lubricant remaining in that portion of the second passage 41 which extends between the valve member 5i and the channel 26, a bleed-off conduit H is provided in the valve member 5| leading to the bottom of the valve member which extends be ow base I so that the lubricant can be drained off and collected.

In operation, a lubricant of suitable grade and quality is placed in the lubricant supply vessel 32 and handle 43 is turned to force the lubricant into second passage 47 under a relatively low pressure. A bullet is then positioned between the die and the plunger l6. Upon lowering handle H, the bullet is forced into the die. At the same time, valve member 5| is lowered from the pressure relieving position shown in Figure 4. The travel of the valve member is substantially parallel to that of the plunger and its rate of travel is such that by the time a bullet is in position in the die, the valve member has moved 4 down to cut off the flow of lubricant through passage 4! and into a position intermediate those of Figures 4 and 5. Continued movement of the handle I! moves piston 49 into position, first to out off the flow of lubricant from passage 45 into passage 4! and then to place a higher pressure on the lubricant in passage 41. By this time, valve member 5| is in such a position that passage 55 is in position to pass the lubricant on into the lubricating channel 26 as in Figure 5. Continued depression of handle I! results in the bullet being forced on through the die; due to the linkage connection and the rate of movement of bell crank 64, the movement of the piston 49 is dis continued. However, valve member 5| continues to move with handle I! and to cut off the supply of lubricant as the bullet is moved past channel 26 as will be seen if one compares Figures 5 and When the bullet has been forced through the die, handle I! is raised to return the plunger, the valve m mber and piston to their starting positions (Figure 4) wherein conduit ll is positioned to re ieve the pressure. The bullet is not forced completely through the die, the handle being returned to its raised position and another bullet inserted to force the bullet in the die out of position, the second bullet being forced through the die, sized and lubricated. V

In Figure 1 we have shown a modified form of device wherein rod 54 is utilized as the lubricant cut-off and pressure applicator. To this end rod 54 is provided with a lunger portion 9| movable through a chamber 12, the latter being supplied with lubricant by lubricant reservoir 3|. Base 9 include two passages 13 and 14, one leading to the .bullet die l4 and the other to an excess lubricant passage l5 and an outlet I6. Rod 54 includes a central passage (1 therein into which lubricant is adm tted from chamber T2 through inlet 18, rovided just below the plunger portion 9|. Outlet passages 19 andv lead from the central pasage Tl; these can communicate with passage 13.

When the rod 54 is owered, the plunger portion first cuts oif the flow of lubricant from the reservoir 3| and from passage l3 through passage 14. Continued movement of rod 54 then compresses the lubricant in chamber 12, pa-sage l1, outlet passages 19 and 80 and assage 13' so that the lubricant is ap l ed forcefullv to the die l4 as the bullet is forced therethrough, When the rod 54 is rai-ed, the excess pressu e is finally released into passages 14, 15 and 16 from the die and from passage 13. However, atmospheric release only occurs after plunge 54 has moved upwardly to open passage 14. The first release of any excess pressure in conduit 73 is into chamber l2 so that a minimum release of lubricant occurs to the atmosph re through outlet 16. This is pofsible because of the thick viscous nature of the lubricant employed.

From the foregoing, we believe it will be apparent that we have provided a novel and simple bullet sizer and lubricator which is efiective to size and lubricate a bu let with an adequate and uniform quantity of lubricant. The only lubricant wasted is that released to relieve the pressure. 7

We claim:

'1. A bullet-sizer and lubricator comprising a bullet-sizing die having a channel for lubricant pa sage to said die; a lubricant supply normally maintained under a first pressure to supply lubricant to said channel; a conduit connecting said lubrigf illfi supply to said channel; a supplemental lubricant pressure chamber; a lubricant pressure piston movable in said supplemental chamber to apply a second pressure in excess of said first pressure to lubricant in said channel; a valve in said conduit including a valve member movable between a valve open position wherein lubricant can flow through said conduit and a valve closed position wherein the valve member prevents the flow of lubricant through said conduit; a plunger for forcing a bullet through said die; a lever connected to said plunger, said valve member, and said pressure piston for moving said plunger, valve member and piston; said lever arm being movable in one direction simultaneously (1) to position a bullet inside of said die, move said valve member to said open position and move said pressure piston to supply a lubri ant under said second pressure to a bullet in said die and in another direction simultaneously (2) to move said plunger away from a bullet in said die, move said valve member to a valve closed position and retract said pressure piston from its pressure application.

2. A bullet-sizer and lubricator com rising a bullet-sizing die having a lubricant supply channel therein; a plunger movable along the longitudinal axis of said die to force a bullet into and throu h said die: a lubricant conduit connected to said die lubricant su ply cb annel: a valve member positioned paral el to said plunger and movable in a channel ext nding parallel to said die axis and across said lubricant conduit; said valve member having a transverse passage therein extending parallel to said condu t; a lubricant pressure cvlinder conn cted to sa d conduit: means for sup lying a lubricant at a fir t pressure to said cvlinder: a piston in said cvl nder movable to ap ly a second pres ure to lubricant in said cylind r. said second pres ure being in excess of sa d first pr ssure: a lev r arm connecting said plun er, said valve m mber a d said ressure piston: said lev r avm being movable in one d rection simu tan ou ly 1) to position a bullet inside of said. die. move said a v m ber to a i n said transver e pas a e in said member with said condu t a d move said pre sure piston to applv said seco d press re to sa d lubricant to force lubricant to id ullet and in anoth r direction simult neouslv (2) to m ve said plunger away from said bu let in said die. move sa d valve member to tran pose said tran verse passa e to a po ition out of ali m nt w th said conduit and move said pres ure i ton to release the second pressure on s id lu ricant.

3. A bu letiaer and lu ricator comprising a. bull t-si' ing d e having a lubricant supply channel therein, a plun er movable along the longitudina ax s of said die to force a bullet into and through sa d d e: a cvl nder extending para lel to said d e ax s: a comb ned valve-p ston m mber mounted to move reciproca ly in said cylinder and having a face thereon to a ply pressure to a lubricant in said cylinder: a conduit extending between a first ort in said cvlinder and said lubr cant channe said valve-piston member including an interior passa e extendin from a second ort on said piston face to a third port in a wall on the piston; a lubricant supplv normal y maintained under a first pressure to supply lubricant to sa d cylinder for com ression to a second pressure through an inl t orifice in the side of said cvlinder: a handle; a lever arm connecting said handle. said plunger and said valve piston member; said lever arm being movable in a first direction simultaneously (1) to position a bullet inside of said die, move said valve piston member (a) to block said inlet orifice, (b) to align said third port with said first port in said cylinder and (c) to apply a second and increased pressure to lubricant confined between said piston compression surface and the Walls of said cylinder; and movable in another direction simultaneous"y (2) to move said plunger away from the bullet in said die and move said valve piston member (a) to block said first port and (b) to open said inlet orifice to release the second pressure on said lubricant.

4. A bullet-sizer and lubricator comprising a bullet-sizing die having a lubricant supply channel therein; a plunger movable along the longitudinal axis of said die to force bullet into and through said die; a cylinder including a first portion thereof having a first diameter and a second portion thereof having a second and lesser diameter; said cvlinder extending parallel to said die axis; a piston member mounted to move reciprocally in said cylinder; said piston member including a first port on having substantially the same diameter as sa d first cylinder portion diameter and a second portion having substantially the same diameter as the diameter of said second cylinder portion: a conduit extending between a first port in said first portion of said cylinder and said lubric nt channel; sa d piston member including an interior passage extending from a second port in said second port-ion of said piston to a third port on the wall of said first portion of said p ston: said second ort being adiacent to the junction between s id first and said second pi ton portions: a lubricant r lease duct extending bet een sa d lubricant channel and a fourth port in the wall of said second portion of said ylinder: a lubricant supplv normallv ma nt' ined und r a first pressure to sun lv l br cant for compression to a seco d pres ur tbrou h an inlet orifice in s de of said first porti n of said cylinder: a lever arm connect d to said lunger and sa d pi t n m m er: s id lever arm being movable in a first d rection simultaneou lv (l) to position bullet in ide of said d es move said piston mem er (a) to close said inlet or fice and said fourth p rt, (1)) to align said third port with said first port and (c) to a ply a second and increa ed pre sure to lubr cant confined in the space betwe n one e d of sa d r t pi ton portion and one end of id fir t c linder port on; and movable in anot r direct on simultaneously (2) to move said l nger aw y from the bullet in said die and move s id i ton member (a) to clo e said fir t ort and (b) to open said inlet orifice and said fourth port to release the second pressure on said lubric nt.

LUCITTS E. WADMAN. FREDERICK J. GOMES.

REFERENCES CITED The fo lo in references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Num er Name Date 2,019,795 Peterson Nov. 5, 1935 2,133,873 Sharp Oct. 18, 1938 2,403,032 Stevens July 2, 1946 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 20,800 Austria July 25, 1905 

